


Long Summer

by ashes0909



Category: The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Summer Camp, Boys Kissing, Boys Sleeping in Bunkbeds, M/M, Pining Tony Stark
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-02
Updated: 2018-03-02
Packaged: 2019-03-25 20:34:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,572
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13842522
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ashes0909/pseuds/ashes0909
Summary: This was the first night of their tenth, and last, year of camp.





	Long Summer

It was dark inside the cabin. Outside, the night sounds of Camp Triskelion did little to help Tony sleep. He turned on his side to see the familiar puff of blond hair as Steve’s sheets rose and fell with each breath. Tony groaned into the too-full cabin, knowing that all eleven of its familiar occupants were heavy sleepers.

This was the first night of their tenth, and last, year of camp.

He let his eyes roam Steve’s face and wondered if he was grateful or anguished that soon they’d never see each other again.

That morning Steve had been the first fellow camper he saw, dropped off mere minutes before Tony. He looked so excited, his blue eyes brightening as the sun crossed his face. “Tony!” Steve had smiled. They’d been cabin mates for a decade, but Tony always forgot how much he missed Steve until he saw him again. “Last year, can you believe it?” Steve asked. “I’m itching to get in the lake, I rode up here in my swimming trunks. Want to join?” Steve stripped off his shirt, right there next to drop-off, and shoved it into his backpack before putting the bag onto his back and heading towards the lake.

Tony remembered the days of Steve’s skinny arms and knobby knees. Now, his backpack barely covered the expanse of his back and his shoulders. Tony wanted to run his hand along the muscle. He imagined Steve carrying Tony on his back towards the lake. It was too much, Jarvis hadn’t even fully pulled away, and he was already fantasizing about his roommates. “No, not now. I have more than a backpack to unpack. I’ll see you later!” Tony fiddled with the handle of his rolly suitcase and tried to stop his mind from replaying Steve ripping off his shirt on loop.

“‘Course you will.” Steve grinned over his shoulder. “Bunk neighbors!”

“Yup.” Because that’s how it’d always been, across from each others’ top bunks, Steve so close, all he had to do was roll over and see him. And there he’d be, like he was right now: lips parted, face clear of any unease, the curve of his neck, the length of his chest. His sheets were bunched along his waist and Tony let himself have this, even though he knew it was wrong, but he wanted to see the dip of his collarbone, the tempting sight of his hard nipple.

Tony turned away, faced Rhodey’s back, and squeezed his eyes shut until his whole face distorted with his will to fall the fuck asleep.

It hadn’t always been like this when it came to Steve. But last year something had switched in Tony’s brain, and now it was impossible for him to look at him any other way.

It was going to be a long summer.

~~~

Tony slept in and missed breakfast. The first activity he picked for the day was in the Peggy Carter building - Arts & Crafts - because he knew Steve loved being outdoors, and the last thing Tony needed right now was to be anywhere near Steve. They lived together, they ate together, they practically showered together and _nope!_ Tony did not need that mental image.

He glued another bedazzle onto his jean jacket. He was going to rock this shit and not think about Steve.

Pepper sat across from him, buffing Hill’s nails, the first step in their manicure project. “I just can’t believe this is our  _last_ first day!” Pepper said, for the third time.

“Technically the first day was yesterday.” Tony pressed the next jewel along the shoulder seam after Pepper predictably kicked him under the table. “I’m trying to make you feel better. It already happened. Spilled milk, and all that.”

Outside their door, there was a bang from down the hallway - the side door flying open and hitting the back wall. Tons of footsteps running down the hall should probably startle the Arts & Crafts hobby hour, but none of its occupants so much as looked up from their projects. Tony held his breath, though. Steve would certainly be part of the capture the flag game.

Tony continued to keep his head down when a loud thump of a hand caught the doorframe and the room greeted Steve.

“How's the game?” Pepper asked, voice cheery and not realizing at all how her decision to keep Steve here, instead of letting him rush down the hall, was messing with Tony. Of course, she didn’t know, because Tony hadn’t told a soul about the flip that had switched inside him when it came to Steve.

“We’re losing. Sam’s team got the lead early on, and it’s too hot out right now to do anything about it.” He didn’t sound mad, just amused, and Tony gritted his teeth against how adorable he found it. He pressed another jewel at random on the side of jacket, totally ruining his pattern. “What you got there, Tony?” Steve asked him.

He had to look now, it would be too noticeable if he didn’t. Steve’s face was flush from exertion, but he appeared openly interested as Tony held up the jacket he was decorating. Steve’s white shirt stuck to his abs, and Tony’s mind supplied him with the image of of Steve stripping it off. Fuck, the way his body reacted lately, a single stray thought of Steve and he was grateful for the table that separated them. Tony glued his gaze back to his jean jacket. “It’s for the Welcome Back dance tomorrow.”

“I like it.” Tony wished he could see his face but looking at him right now would only make it worse.

“Thanks.”

“Well.. I--I guess I’ll see you back at the cabin.”

“Yup.” Tony popped “Bunk right next to mine,” he added, as if either of them had forgotten.

“Right,” Steve sounded confused now, and it was enough to make Tony look up from his jacket. Steve was shifting in the doorway, biting at his lip. “Right. I gotta go-- I guess I should catch up with my team.”

“Makes sense.”

A moment passed, and then Hill was laughing. “That was fucking weird. Why are you being fucking weird?”

“Yeah,” Pepper agreed, considering eyes locked on Tony. “Why Tony?”

Tony held up his jacket, every seam covered in jewels. He ignored their question completely. “What do you think?”

~~~

It started raining shortly after dinner, and their whole cabin made their way inside early to last out the storm. A few groups congregated in different corners - Grillo and his crossfit crossbones were working out at one end. Clint and Bucky were in the corner making arrows out of a couple of Buck’s knives. Steve would probably be glaring at them, reminding them that Ross specifically prohibited this behavior last year, but he was too busy with the card game that was currently going on between their lower bunks.

Happy was dealing below him, and while he had stopped asking five hands ago if Tony wanted to be dealt in, Steve was more persistent.

“I’m hungry,” he answered in response to Steve’s poker offer. He hopped off the bunk and made his way to the secret stash they hid beneath a few of the floor boards. No Food Allowed had always been more of a challenge than a rule.

“See any chips down there?” he heard Steve’s voice from behind him, when he stood up they were too close. Tony fisted the peanuts he’d grabbed until the excess air popped the bag. They both jumped. Steve let out an awkward laugh. Tony wanted to crawl under the floorboards with the food stash. He jumped back instead, gestured towards the floor. “It’s all yours.”

He didn’t hear Steve’s response as he hurried back from their makeshift pantry to his bunk, and barely gave Steve another glance until lights out. Then, only once he heard the deep breathing of the cabin’s occupants, did he roll onto his side and allow himself to see him.

Tonight, Steve was staring back.

Tony’s breath caught, he turned on his side and squeezed his eyes shut and tried to convince himself he was seeing things in the dark.

~~~

The music pulsed in his chest and ears, he had to lean in close to Rhodey’s ear to have a normal conversation. A not-so-bad DJ was at the far end of the gymnasium, and campers of all ages were dancing on the basketball court. Tony watched because he usually needed a drink to get comfortable on the dance floor, and that wasn’t something he’d managed to find on his third day of camp. The Welcome Back Dance was always a bit tame. His bedazzled jacket looked amazing though, so it wasn’t all bad.

“Tony,” Nat greeted as she walked by in black leather pants. Steve wasn’t the only one that had changed over the years. They all had; some people he found himself appreciating more than others. Nat had her arm around Clint and wore a smirk that spelled trouble. She grabbed Tony’s wrist, and Tony grabbed Rhodey’s, and they walked in a long line towards the dance floor. At least his friends would distract him from the fact that Steve still had not arrived. Not that he was looking for him or anything. It was almost like he was attune to his presence, like sparks under his skin that ignited whenever Steve was near. It was a problem.

A few songs passed, and then Nat was leading him into a spin, and the world blurred around him but not enough to block out familiar broad shoulders. Steve stood at the edge of the dance floor, and Tony ignited in Nat’s arms. His hips rode with the synthetic notes of the music as Nat turned him around to face Clint. They danced as a group, hands touching each other freely, like no time had passed since they’d last done this, instead of the near year that they’d been apart.

The song ended. He wasn’t strong enough not to look towards where Steve stood, and he wasn’t surprised to find him no longer standing there. Tony pulled away from his the others.

“Where you going?” Rhodey asked, already twirling Nat into the next song.

“I’ll be right back.”

There was a pit in his stomach, one that told him that somewhere along the way he’d messed up somehow. He didn’t know when but something he’d chosen to do or say resulted in this underlying _wrong_ he felt.

_Last night, standing by the food stash, the brightness leaving Steve when Tony pulled away._

_Right now, at the dance, Steve bolting instead of joining in._

He rushed to their cabin, the place in all of camp that they both called home. He could tell the cabin light was on from the outside but inside, the cabin was empty. Tony walked over to their bunks, was about to head back out, when he heard a noise from the opposite end of the room by the bathroom.

Tony didn’t even think, he just flew up the ladder of Steve’s bunk and sat scrunched against the back wall, and waited.

Steve came out of the bathroom and didn’t see him at first. Tony could tell because he kept shaking his head and wiping his face, mumbling to himself that he was overreacting and being stupid.

“I seriously doubt there’s a stupid bone in your body.”

Steve jumped, hands flying to his chest as if Tony had shocked his very heart. “Tony! You scared me. Why are you on my bed? What are you even doing here? I saw you dancing out in the--I’m talking a lot. You scared me!”

“Yeah, sorry about that.” Tony shrugged. “Not a big fan of people talking badly about my friends.”

Steve’s face scrunched in confusion. Tony couldn’t look away; Steve didn’t seem to want him to. He kept their eyes locked even as he said, “I have no idea what you’re talking about, Tony.”

“The negative self-talk.” Tony let his hand gesture indicate Steve’s past conversation with himself. “Not a fan. You’re too nice a guy for all that.”

“If I’m so ‘nice’, why are you avoiding me?” Steve walked over, climbed the ladder up to his bed and fit into the tiny space next to Tony.

Tony’s pulse raced. There was no room to shift away from Steve.

“Why are you in my bed?”

Tony looked at his hands, they were so close to Steve’s. “Do you want me to leave?”

“No.”

Tony had to bite his lip to stop himself from grinning too hard, but he doubted it worked. Steve looked happy too, a bit shellshocked, like he wasn’t sure what was going on but he liked where it was going.

“I’m sorry I was avoiding you.” Tony shifted, and Steve’s arm slipped behind him. His hand landed on Tony’s waist, and he’d never felt so right in someone's arms. “It’s our last year,” Tony whispered the words like they were a confession instead of a fact. Like they explained why Tony was acting so strange, like they were an excuse and an answer all in one.

“I’m going to miss living with you every summer,” Steve admitted.

Tony swallowed. “Me too. You have no idea.”

“I do,” Steve corrected. “ _You’re_ the one wasting three days of our last summer at Arts  & Crafts.”

“You like Arts & Crafts!”

“Not on capture the flag days! Which you know! You love capture the flag. So, why?”

They were so close together, Tony could make out the different shades of blue in Steve’s eyes, then he let his gaze flick down to Steve’s mouth. “Do you really not know why?” Tony whispered. Had he been that good at concealing his crush?

“I’m starting to get an idea.” Steve answered. Then after a moment he added. “Since when?”

“Last week of camp, last year.”

“Color War?”

Tony nodded. “You’d gotten back to the cabin with so much blue paint over you. Your face, your hair.”

“I remember.”

“The switch flipped when the first thought I had was that you looked adorable, followed immediately by wanting to push you into the shower until we were both clean and coming...and well...yeah.”

Steve had sucked in a breath when Tony’d said the word ‘coming’ and now he was looking at Tony’s lips. _Fuck._ Tony wanted Steve so bad, and he’d never felt closer to him than right in this moment, squished too tight on Steve’s twin bunk bed. “Since when,” Tony dared to ask, “for you?”

“Way longer than that.” Steve smirked then closed the space between them. Tony froze but Steve’s lips were sure against Tony’s questioning ones, and at the first swipe of Steve’s tongue, Tony melted open. He moaned, and Steve moaned in reply, turning their embrace until Tony was under him.

Tony’s mind was whirling as Steve’s hands snuck under his bedazzled jean jacket to roam along his back. Steve had wanted him, still wanted him. Tony pulled away with a gasp. “Did you strip your shirt off at drop-off on purpose?” Tony asked through heaving breaths. “To _tempt_ me?”

Steve turned a delightful shade of pink.

“Oh you devious fucker,” Tony said, voice dripping with pride. Then he pulled Steve back down to his lips so they could make out until the one of their cabin mates returned and groaned in their direction.

It was going to be a good summer.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for the quick beta, ferret!
> 
> Come visit me on tumblr: [ashes0909](http://ashes0909.tumblr.com)!


End file.
